Stoneham High School - Wildlife Yearbook (Stoneham, MA)

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THE STONEHAM HIGH SCHOOL AUTHENTIC Hurfl playing an instrument which has taken the place of a saxaphone and call- ed the tinniophone, invented by that great chain store magnet in his spare time. It has been rumored that this was the reason his wife, the former Euth Chapman, left the Finnegan man- sion in Finneganville. (When I was a schoolboy, Finneganville was known as Wright Street. It seems that Tom bought that entire section.) Next in line will come a detachment of the U. S. Army. The detachment is under the command of Colonel Francis Brady, who back in 1932 was receiving his military training as a member of the militia or Company I and the Mas- sachusetts Bay Horse Marines. The parade will have as an added fea- ture many beautiful floats. The first float will be one depicting the slum life of the city, and how it is being bettered by that great social service worker, Doris Bowser. The truck on which the float is to be modeled has been loaned by the Stinson-Jones Chevrolet Com- pany. Jack always was interested in Chevrolet. Bill sells Chevrolets in the winter season as he is now a major leaguer baseball player. The next float is one advertising the White Elephant day at the Wakefield Women’s Shop, located in Stoneham. This float is spon- sored by Anna Apalakis j I mean Anna is still interested in Wakefield). Anoth- er interesting float will show the prog- ress in farming and is sponsored by the foremost farmer of New England, Ver- mont Brock Farnsworth, w ' ho, by the way, folks, is married to Jean Vorbeau. The end of the parade will find George Lirakis in charge of the Boy Scouts. Good old George! He has final- ly decided that there is no life like run- ning a fruit store and having command of th e Boy Scouts. Page three of the program! Perhaps I shall find the advertisements from some of my other classmates. Yes, here is an interesting one. Lincolnville Dairy, proprietors, Kobert Kelly and Edward Donegan. Well, these two prominent young men of ’32 have con- tinued their schoolday labor and are running a dairy. What’s this! a pic- ture labeled “Look what our products have done for this man.” Why (then I rub my eyes), if that isn’t a picture of good old Kolly Hotin. Gosh, he still posesses that big smile, that curly red hair, and is bigger than ever. (I won- der if Eddie Donegan has used his own I products to good advantage.) At the j bottom of the announcement I find the notice that all Bob’s cow s are fed ex- I clusively by the Sidney Allen method, j It seems that “Sid” has at least put one I of his n umerous ideas to work that were I the life of every class session back in 1 1932.) I Still another notice of interest ; I [should say it was: “Compliments of the I Gershivin Studio.” Dorothy Tole and ! Francis McGah are the vocal teachers at j the studio ; if I read correctly, Virginia j Joyce is the instructor of elocution, and I Virginia Williams the dancing instruc- ' tor. There is certainly an abundance of talent in that studio and it is little wonder that some of its pupils have be- come world famous. Still another, the “Paulanson Beauty Parlor,” run by my old classmate, Pauline Miller. I Page four of the program. Fine. Here i is a list of the committees in charge of I the celebration ; surely some of the S members of ’32 are working on these j committees. Yes, I am right. I find I Eobert Craigie chairman of the general I anniversory committee; Alfred Young, (who, by the way, has made a great deal I of money on a new lotion which clears up freckles overnight), and Tony Mele, , who has become a prosperous truck gardener in Stoneham, are also on the I committee. The amusement and ath- letic committee is headed by William Chase, that fine athlete of S. H. S. back in 1932. “Bill” is the athletic coach at I the new 120 room high school on the i former Judge Stevens estate where Mr. j Watson is finishing out his 24th year of service as principal of Stoneham High and on his teaching staff one will find Nora Bagdikian, head of history de- partment; Leah Temple is teaching commercial studies; Eichard Hodgman, i instructor of physics and advanced I math (Dick always was a math shark) ; I Anna Fulton, instructor in foreign language; Jean Quincy, hygiene teach- er, and that mighty “mite”, Maryalice Newhall, girls’ physical education in- structor. Mr. Watson’t secretary is none other than the secretary of the Class of 1932, Margaret McLaughlin, and Evelyn Lamb is secretary to the super- intendent of schools. The rest of Bill’s committee who are members of ’32 are I Marjorie Bickum, in charge of women’s I athletics, and Dorothy Cook, who is to j have charge of awarding the prizes, es- I pecially those to Wakefield athletes. I Next I find the committee in charge 10

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GRADUATION NUMBER soon as possible? During the week there will be held the 18th reunion of the Class of 1932, which is in charge of Helen Brown Pierce, to be held at her beautiful gar- den. Yes, Helen always was interested in flowers. This will afford you a chance to meet many old friends. The hostess- es are to be Muriel Berry Taylor, Vir- ginia Tolman Lovering, and June Yea- ton Barton. (Aha! I see all these school day romances have become permanent ones.) As for myself, I am a professor of English at my Alma Mater, Tufts, and live here in Stoneham, the healthiest city in Massachusetts. I have enclosed an advanced program of the celebra- tion including the pageant program which I thought would be of interest to you. Closing for the present, I re- main. Your friend, Lewis Henry Parks. Well, that certainly was an interest- ing letter. I shall certainly try to take advantage of Lewis’ kind invitation. It is time for me to leave home for my day’s work and I place the program in my pocket. After reaching my seat in the rapid transit I draw it forth to read and on the first page of the pro- gram I find the following statement : “This program was made possible through the kindness of the advertisers. Please patronize their establishments.” Surely some of 1 932 have entered the business Avorld. Now let mo see. Yes, the first ad to meet my eyes was one announcing the drive for a hundred thousand dollars for an addition to the new Memorial Hospital. The staff of that hospital appears to contain many of my old friends, including Richard “Dick” Hunt, house doctor. “Dick” has made quite a name for himself in the world of surgery and medicine. Mary Maguire, Superintendent of the Nurses, and Marion Gilson, dietition, are other members of ’32, and on the list of nurses I find Phyllis Watts, Ethel Cam- eron, Dorothy Lawson, Clarice Varney, Elizabeth Clark, and Elizabeth DiPetro, all former classmates at S. H. S. Please address all correspondence to Gertrude French Hunt was the note at the end. The last I knew of Gert was v hen she w ' as writing her latest book which woas entitled “Hunting the Dicky-Bird in the Wilds of Congress Street,” The next ad is startling to me, “The Quality Lunch,” under the new ' manage- ment of Christine Perry and Robert Parks. My, there must be many an ar- gument between the proprietors if Christine tries to make sandwiches the way Ann O Connor made them back in 1932. “Bob” never could find one of her sandwiches he liked. Glancing down the page I find that Catherine Jackson is now running the Adelaide Gown Shoppe on the corner of Lindenwood Road and Main Street, which is now the downtown district of Stoneham. Directly below this I find a space which reads “With the Compli- ments of Taylor and Taylor and (er) Son. Ah! Yes! I remember reading in the papers a year ago that Miner and Clip had been hired by a man and wife to argue eases against each other at a divorce trial. Miner brought victory to his client W illard Eldridge who was su- ing for divorce on the grounds that his wife, the former Mildred Dempsey, never had his meals ready on time. It seems to me “Milly” used to be late back in 1932 and was almost divorced from Room 13 by Czar Earle T. Thibo- deau. On the second page I find the roster of the parade to be held June 17th. At the head of the line will be the city police force including three of my form- er classmates, namely Captain John Mc- Kinnon, who has followed in the foot- steps of his father ; Edward Haradon, and Milo Temple, the last two men- tioned having finally joined the police force to keep from being arrested for speeding. The marshal of the parade is to be none other than Charles Frost who finds no other w ' ay to keep in the limelight, having failed to become a sec- ond “Shires” on the Stoneham Cubs. It seems that Raymond McKinnon holds the managerial reins of the Cubs, hav- ing received valuable experience back in 1932 and is now being hailed as the Connie Mack of Minor Leagues. The band which will furnish the mu- sic for the parade is under the direc- tion of Bernard Roche of 1932 fame w’ho if I remember correctly was a whole band in himself. Members of the group “Bernie and His Boys,” who were class- mates of mine, are George Adzigian. bass horn, (“Adzie” always had lots of extra hot air and is now putting it to work); William “Red” Brooks, fluter; Eugene Hovey, drummer (yes. Gene al- ways was the big noise of Room 13) ; his side-kick, William (call me Vs illie) McDonough, trumpeteer, and Harold Q

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GRADUATION NUMBER of the pageant. Austin Cheswell is list- ed as the director and all news from Stoneham brings the impression that “Bert” has replaced the time honored George MacNeil as director in the dra- matic productions held in the City of 8toneham. He is to be ably assisted by Ruth Motyer who is a professor of Eng- lish at Boston University. The lighting effects and scenery are to be in charge of Allen Barton who also teaches art at Stoneham High. The costumes are to be planned by Lucille DeAngeles, whom I met recently in Paris studying de- signing. The hostesses at the pageant to welcome the many visitors include Vera Driscoll, Dorothea Stinson, Jennie Orsillo, Anna O’Brien, Helen Marshal, Ruth Brown O’Laughlin, Ruth Anderson Taylor and Eleanor Russell, who have formed a contract bridge club and hold the United States bridge team cham- pionship. However, I recall a news- paper clipping of a few months ago which told how the combination of Marie Thibodeau and Mary Cody nearly brought the trophy to Woburn, where those two members of ’32 now reside. The music for the pageant is iji the joint charge of Julia Calahan, concert pianist of no little fame, and J. Willis Brown. (How well I remember Bill tickling the ivories on that piano back in that assembly hall of S. H. S. with Mel, Will, Clip, Dick, Bob, and the rest of the gang moanin’ low.) Bill is now directing that famous band, “Joe and his Stonehamites,” with that well known theme song of his, “Building a Nest for Mary.” (You know Mary Dorothy Cor- coran to whom “Bill” says all his success in the world of “Hot Cha” is due.) Mj ' - eyes carry across the program to page five where staring me in the face is another ad of interest. It tells of a tire shop run by John “Tire” Wood. Good old Jack has a special sale on the Prescottian tire which has had univer- sal success and made my old pal, “Nor- mie” Prescott, a well to do gentleman. My, what’s this, Downes and Lovering, Real Estate, Electrical Appliances, and Insurance. The last I knew of these two was when Warren was heading a real estate boom in Florida in a town called Bettyville and Elmer was regu- larly winning B. A. A. marathons. “Compliments of Phil’s Smoke Shop” and although there is no proprietor list- ed one would guess that it is owned by Phil Moody. Fine. Great! Here is a choice bit of news about two of my classmates of whom I had lost track. By the program it appears that these two have opened the “Tillie Craft and Tea Room.” Yes, the proprietors are none other than James Clark and Jane Tilden. Janie takes care of the art craft and Jimmie the tea and cake. The final page of the program has more in store for me than any other one. The page is headed, “Noted per- sons who will visit Stoneham during the Anniversary.” The first name on the list brings back fond memories. It is that of Wilbur “Bullet” Avery. Wil- bur, as in Stoneham High, is now set- ting the style for the world. What Wilbur wears is the correct thing. I find underneath Wilbur’s name that of Mary Biekum, world famous authoress, who back in ’32 wrote the class history and has just recently finished a world’s history. Next comes the name of Alma Patch who is the Prima Donna of the Chicago Opera Company. Then the name of Kenneth Hanson, my old pal, “Ken,” has made quite a name for him- self as a research chemist, which has brought to light his real talents now recognized by everybody. I see by the program that Rosa Marie Todd will also ])e among the guests. My, how many times have I seen that name blazoned up and down Broadway and always ])righter for each return engagement. How well I remember reading in the headlines; “Marsh and Holmes,” first women fliers to complete air trip around the world. (However, they always W ' ere high minded.) So they too are to bo visitors. But the celebration could not possibly be a success without the last mentioned name on the list, that of Mel Flynn or better known as the one and only stage comedian who could replace Will Rogers in the hearts of American theatre goers. Mel has the cowboy legs, rope, and above all, the face. How well I remember Mel in that last film of his entitled, “The Flynns of West Hancock Street.” Would I take Lewis up on his invi- tation? I certainly will and it will be the first thing I do when I reach my office. It doesn’t seem possible that I could hear of all my classmates in such a short space of time. What a thrill it will be to learn more about each one from his own lips. My fondest dream is about to come true. Good old Lewis and God bless Mel, Fran, Dick, Will, Bob, I Ken, George and all the members of 1932. 11